Gov. Christie hints more firings are possible

Says the GWB lane closings were beyond his control

Feb. 12, 2014

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie right, talks with Chairman and CEO of Motorola Solutions Greg Brown left, before speaking to the Economic Club of Chicago on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014 in Chicago. Christie says the traffic scandal facing him is disappointing but not a distraction from his job as governor, or from raising money for Republican candidates for governor. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty) / AP

Written by

Bob Jordan | @BobJordanAPP

CHICAGO — As he continued to try to put distance between himself and the traffic jams that tied up Fort Lee in September, Gov. Chris Christie hinted that he’s willing to send out another round of pink slips if an internal investigation proves it’s warranted.

Speaking before a group of Republican donors, Christie made his first expansive comments in a month about the scandals gripping his administration. He blamed human frailties for “significant mistakes in judgment” and claimed that preventing the George Washington Bridge lane closures was beyond his control.

“Large organizations are dynamic and incredibly creative because they’re inhabited by human beings. They’re also inherently flawed because they’re inhabited by human beings,” Christie said during a luncheon presentation to 1,600 business leaders Tuesday.

The Republican governor claimed to have been “incredibly disappointed” by “people who I had trusted.” He’s ordered an internal review of the lane closures, which is being led by attorney Randy Mastro, who is being paid $650 an hour.

“Whatever that internal review discloses, we’re going to release to the public,” Christie said. “If there is more action to be taken, I’ll take it.”

Christie fired his deputy chief of staff and his campaign manager after evidence became public Jan. 8 that political retribution motivated the traffic jams. Lawmakers targeted administration members among the 18 subpoenas they issued in their investigation Monday and federal prosecutors have their own probe.

Also Tuesday, Christie’s re-election committee learned it will be allowed to use and, if needed, raise campaign funds to cover the cost of answering subpoenas in a ruling by the state Election Commission.

The State Police in a statement also shot down the rumor that Christie flew in a helicopter over the George Washington Bridge during the middle of the traffic jams ordered by former allies at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Christie last spoke extensively on the topic Jan. 9 when he held a news conference that lasted nearly two hours. This was Christie’s 20th public event since. None have been open to journalists’ questions.

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The moderator for the Economic Club of Chicago event was Motorola Solutions CEO Greg Brown, an adviser to Christie on higher education. Brown is a deep-pocketed contributor to Rutgers University athletics and was appointed by Christie to the school’s Board of Governors in 2012.

Brown lobbed several softball questions during the one-hour program — such as asking Christie to name his favorite Republican president of the last century — but also did hit on what he called “the GW Bridge situation.”

“Actually I’m shocked that you brought that up,” said Christie, drawing laughs.

Turning serious, Christie said, “Some people who worked for me made some significant mistakes in judgment. When you’re the leader of that organization and you’re confronted with that, the first thing that happens to you, happened to me ... extraordinary disappointment that people I had trusted had made such bad judgments and they had not told me the truth. But you only have a few minutes to wallow in that disappointment, and if you’re a leader you have to try and get a handle on the story and take decisive action, which we did by letting people go, and talking to the public about it.”

“The last six weeks haven’t been the most enjoyable of my life, I can guarantee you,” Christie added.

Christie also tried to make the case that the bridge scandal won’t “curtail for the long haul a second-term agenda because I think the public in New Jersey won’t tolerate it. The fact is, they expect me and the Legislature to continue to do what we did in the first four years, which was to find solutions to New Jersey’s problems.”

National Democrats weren’t buying it and said Christie should have stayed home. Christie, on behalf of the Republican Governors Association, also attended a morning fundraiser for Illinois House Minority Leader Jim Durkin and several more private meetings with donors and was scheduled to attend dinner at the home of Kenneth Griffin, head of the Citadel LLC investment firm.

Former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland showed up a Democratic National Committee news conference to counter Christie.

“Christie needs to understand the public was the victim of ‘Bridgegate,’ not Christie,” Strickland said.

Democrats held similar events when Christie traveled to Florida and Texas to raise funds for the RGA. They say the bridge controversy will render Christie politically toxic and therefore ineffective at the RGA, although the association says it raised a record $6 million in January.

Strickland said Christie’s New Jersey trouble “is not a good image for the RGA.”

Strickland also mocked the assertion made by sources to Politico that Christie had not signed off on an email that attacked David Wildstein, the former Port Authority executive who appears to have coordinated the lane closures. “It’s really unbelievable,” Strickland said.

Strickland was governor of Ohio from 2007 to 2011, when he lost to John Kasich. Christie visited Ohio twice for fundraisers for Kasich in 2010 and did a town-hall meeting with him five weeks before the election.